Tales from the Circus
by MiElettra
Summary: A collection of one-shots about life in the circus, full of drama, love, humour, and insanity. Mostly focused on Gia and Alex. Enjoy!
1. Circus Stick Together

Salve! This is the beginning of my very first story! This is actually going to be a collection of one-shots. Any story I write will be about Dreamworks movies because they are so awesome. As mentioned in my profile, my English skills are not fluent as of yet. An English-speaking friend of mine is going to be the person to correct my writing if it does not make sense. I hope you enjoy my writings!

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**Chapter 1: Circus Stick Together  
**

It had been a week since the incident at the zoo with DuBois. The hatred for the zoo animals' betrayal had worn off and everyone was getting along nicely. Well, almost. Gia and Vitaly were still hesitant to fully trust Alex and the others.

"Let us see if they are indeed...circus material," Gia whispered to her tiger companion, peering from behind a curtain and watching Alex interact with the circus animals.

"Yes," the Russian tiger agreed, "A final test to see if we can trust Lion and friends."

Gia smirked and flicked her spotted tail, releasing her hold on the curtain to go locate Stefano.

* * *

The next morning, Alex and the others were just waking up and stepping out of their train car.

"Man," Marty exclaimed, cracking his neck, "we really need to make those wooden floors more comfortable."

"Yeah, and the ceiling. Just look at the way my neck is twisted!" Melman pointed out, exaggerating the angle of his extremely long neck.

"We'll just have to talk to the penguins about it," Alex said, rolling the knots out of his shoulders.

"Hey, where is everybody?" Gloria pointed out. Everyone looked around, slightly surprised that they hadn't noticed the absence of the circus animals.

They walked over to where the equipment was set up. Nothing was moving. No one was there. They decided to return to the train and wait for their circus friends.

All of a sudden, one of the train cars further up burst open and half of the circus came tumbling out. Gia leaped over the mass of animals and bounced over to the zoo animals, sporting her normally bright smile.

"Buongiorno! Good morning!" she greeted happily.

"Morning, Gia. Mind telling us why you were all scrunched in the train cart?" Alex asked, pointing to the animals standing up behind the jaguar. Stefano and Vitaly came walking up behind her after they stepped around the retreating animals.

"No reason. Come, we have much to do," Vitaly said, ushering the zoo animals towards the circus equipment. Gia followed, her paws behind her back and giggling as she followed.

* * *

As Melman and Gloria made their way to the tight rope, Vitaly quickly threw and unsuspecting Mort up into the air. The frightened lemur shrieked and clutched the rope, screaming for help.

The giraffe and hippopotamus looked at each other and ran for the ladder, beginning to climb to Mort.

"Don't worry, baby! We're coming!" Gloria shouted. She reached the top and pulled her love up the rest of the ladder pegs. She backed up and put Melman's hooves around her neck and began dancing to the terrified lemur. The giraffe spun his partner around and let her fall back to reach for Mort.

"Climb up, sweetie!" Gloria ordered. Mort took no time in clutching himself to her arm, sobbing hysterically. The tight-roping partners began to dance back to the ladder, the only way they knew they could safely return to the ground. Vitaly, who was watching from the ground, looked over to Stefano at the cannon and Gia at the trapeze to give them a thumbs up. They nodded from afar and went back to business.

* * *

Stefano, with Vitaly's thumbs up, loaded himself into the cannon and ordered the penguins to shoot him to the nearest cliff. The sea lion shot through the air with a dramatic scream and struck the rock with a loud bang.

"Help-a me!" he begged to Marty, who was making his way over to the cannon.

"Stefano! Not again, man!" the zebra shouted. He ran to the cannon and jumped in. The penguins shot Marty out of the cannon at Stefano with no hesitation. He landed slightly above Stefano and lowered the rope to the sea lion yet again.

"You know what to do!" Stefano wrapped himself in the rope and began to be lowered to the ground. As he was approaching safety, he looked over to his feline friends and gave them a thumbs up, just as Vitaly had. They nodded and went back to business.

Marty jumped down and landed beside Stefano once he was safe.

"Thank-a you!" the sea lion cried, kissing the zebra's cheeks.

"Uh...You're welcome. Try to be more careful, man."

* * *

Gia turned her attention back to the lion at her side on the ledge in front of the trapeze. This was the final test to see if the zoo animals were worthy to be circus. While Alex was preparing himself for the swing, Gia grabbed the bar and swung herself out. When she should have grabbed the other bar, she purposely let go and began plummeting to the net.

Only, there was no net. Whoever set up the trapeze forgot to put the net and the jaguar failed to notice. Now, she was plummeting to certain death. Or at least major body harm.

She began to scream. This was not a normal, fake scream such as Stefano had made. The circus animals whipped their heads over to her cry. Vitaly's eyes widened as he watched helplessly as his jaguar friend was falling to the ground. Alex heard the desperation in her voice. He turned around swiftly and grabbed the bar with no hesitation, leaping from the ledge.

_Why am I so stupid!, _Gia thought, bracing for impact. _We have gone too far._

She closed her eyes and waited to feel the solid ground break her fall when she felt herself being cradled in soft, furry arms. She opened her eyes to find Alex staring down at her, his legs secured around the bar. "I got you."

He swung to the other side of the trapeze and landed softly. He placed Gia on the platform and held her up, for her legs were shaking far too much to support even her small amount of weight. She turned around to face her fellow circus animals, still in the hold of Alex and raised her paw in the air.

"They are circus!"

The animals cheered and looked at Gloria, Melman, and Marty within the crowd. The three animals were shocked and touched, but gladly accepted the praise they were receiving. Up on the platform, Alex turned to Gia, still supporting her weight.

"What was all of this about?"

"We needed to be sure you were circus. You are circus," she explained, a smile breaking out on her face. Alex smiled and pulled her into his embrace. She giggled cheerfully and returned the hug.

"Fur-a Power!" Stefano shouted from the crowd, causing everyone to repeat his statement happily.

Alex and Gia also repeated the phrase, her accent shining through immensly in the words. She smiled and kissed Alex on the nose.

"Circus stick together."

* * *

It is finally finished! The story has been corrected and read over to make sure there are no mistakes! I added a little of characterized dialogue from how I observed them speaking in the movies. It helps me imagine characters better. I have numerous chapter already thought up, so they will be posted soon, I assure you! I look forward to meeting people, so please do not hesitate to say hello! Ciao!

-Elettra.


	2. Risks of the Circus

Hello once again! Thank you so much for reviews! They make me so happy! I have many ideas for future chapters! I hope you enjoy!

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**Chapter 2: Risks of the Circus**

The sound of power tools echoed through the forest. The circus train, situated at a resting spot near the woods, was the source of the racket. The circus animals stood outside while the penguins did something unknown. The train cars were shaking violently, causing some of the circus animals to flinch.

"I do not understand," Gia said, her foot tapping and arms folded in obvious annoyance. "What are they doing that is so important that we are not allowed to know about?" The other circus animals expressed their frustration as well.

"It's a surprise, guys!" Alex exclaimed. "You won't mind when it's finished!"

Just then, the penguins jumped out of the train cars, quickly slammed the doors shut, and slid over to the group. The animals were silent as they looked on expectantly.

"What are you waiting for? Go on!" Skipper ordered. The entire circus let out joyful screams and ran to their train cars. They stopped short when they realized that there were more train cars that there was originally.

"Vat is this?" Vitaly asked. "Vhere is car?"

"We all get to choose our own!" Gloria exclaimed.

"You can choose to share, but there's enough for everyone!" Melman added. The animals resumed their cheers and ran to their cars.

"Vitaly! Are you and I going to share a car?" Gia asked excitedly to her feline friend.

"Oh, no, no, no. Apologies, Gia, but I prefer own car," he replied.

"Oh," she responded, her ears dropping a bit. She began to walk away when an excited Alex leaped into her field of vision.

"Hey, Gia!" he greeted gleefully.

"Buongiorno, Alex!" Gia returned with equal enthusiasm. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"Uh...yeah. I was wondering if- you don't have to- you'd like to share a car with me?" Alex asked hesitantly. The exotic jaguar squealed and leaped into his arms.

"Of course, of course! I am so glad you asked me! I hate having those big cars all to myself."

Alex chuckled at her bubbly attitude. "Let's go take a look, then."

The two felines walked inside the car. Gia's jaw dropped in shock as she looked at the space in front of her. Alex chuckled at her reaction.

The normally broken, splintery wooden floors were now flat, smooth, and incredibly shiny. The walls of the cars matched the wood on the floor. New lights hung from the ceiling, illuminating the car greatly. To Gia's left, there were two large, circular, flat beds that looked incredibly soft. There were even small nightstands for personal items.

"It is so beautiful!" Gia exclaimed, bouncing over to one of the beds and flopping down upon it. Alex followed her movements. Feathers flew up into the air as they chuckled and giggled.

Alex turned his head over to look at his foreign companion. _She's so beautiful when she smiles, _he thought. She stared back into his eyes as their faces became closer and closer until...

"Do you like it?" Skipper questioned, his demanding voice cutting through the air. "We're making the chimps paint the outside tomorrow." The two felines jerked away from each other and stood up stiffly.

"Uh...yeah, we love it," Alex stammered.

"Good! 'Cause we wouldn't do anything even if you hadn't said that." And with that, the penguins flipped out of the car.

Alex and Gia looked at each other awkwardly.

"We should get to trapeze," Gia suggested to break the silence.

"Yeah. Is there a performance coming up?"

"Not for awhile, but circus never stops practicing," she responded before jumping out of the car. Alex followed her without a word to the trapeze.

* * *

The two felines were standing on opposite platforms, paws wrapped around the bar. Both were still rather shaken up and confused about what had just happened.

"You are ready?" Gia shouted across to Alex.

"Ready when you are," he responded. He took a quick glance below him and saw the other circus animals doing their normal routines. Alex turned his attention back to Gia and saw her begin to jump. He did the same and swung himself off of the platform right towards Gia.

Somehow, they had miscalculated which bars to grab to assure there would be no collision. Before Alex or Gia could flip off, the massive lion smacked right into his small jaguar friend. With a cry of pain, Gia released her hold on the bar and fell to the net.

"Gia!" Alex cried, swinging to the other platform and practically jumping to the ground. Vitaly, Stefano, and the other circus animals had run over to the jaguar's aid as soon as they heard the cracking sound that resulted from the felines' collision.

Said jaguar was curled up in pain in the net. Her paws were wrapped around her side and her eyes were clenched shut. Alex and Vitaly's eyes widened as they ran over to Gia. She hissed and swished her tail when they attempted to touch her.

"We must move you," Vitaly explained to the shaking jaguar.

"It'll be quick, Gia, I promise," Alex added, smoothing the fur back on her spotted head. She opened her eyes slightly and immediately, Alex felt his heart break. Her normally beautiful amber eyes were clouded with such pain; and he caused that pain. She clenched her eyes shut and let out a pained cry once more as the two strong animals lifted her from the net. Vitaly cradled her in his striped arms.

"Where's the closest doctor?" Alex asked the penguins, who were watching the whole scene along with every other member of the circus.

"Kowalski!" Skipper demanded.

"Just over the mountain, Skipper," he replied quickly, pointing in the direction.

"Pack up, everybody!" Stefano cried, his Italian accent echoing through the air. The poor sea lion was incredibly frantic after watching one of his best friends get injured.

Vitaly transferred Gia carefully into Alex's awaiting arms. "Take to your car," he ordered, his emerald eyes piercing into Alex. The lion nodded and made his way over to their car. He gently hopped up inside and walked to Gia's new bed. He placed her down gently on the incredibly soft material. A new, warm blanket had been added to every bed as well. Alex draped the blanket over his shivering friend.

"Everything's gonna be okay, Gia, it's going to be alright," he whispered, smoothing her fur once again. She curled up tighter and let out a pained cry, one that completely smashed Alex's already broken heart.

"We go now. Be there soon," Vitaly informed them before closing the train car door. The train began to move and the circus animals were off in search of anyone that could help their hurting friend.

* * *

Ten minutes later, the train was stopped at a small town in the countryside of Maryland. The chimps had dressed up, once again, as the King of Versailles and returned from town with a veterinarian. Now, all of the circus animals solemnly waited outside of Gia and Alex's train car. Nearly twenty minutes passed before the vet exited from the wooden space and walked over to the chimps. Mumbling was heard, hands were shaken, and the chimps shoved a diamond in the vet's face before he excitedly ran off.

"So? How is she?" Gloria asked, clinging to Melman. Phil jumped from Mason's shoulders and began signing something to his chimp friend.

"He says she's got some broken ribs, how dreadful, and that she should be up and swinging again in no time. She simply needs to rest and keep the bandages on at all times," Mason translated.

The entire crowd of animals let out a sigh of relief. Vitaly, Stefano, Marty, Melman, and Gloria made their way to Alex.

"We'll visit in the mornin'," Marty stated. They turned and separated into their cars: Marty and Stefano, Melman and Gloria, and Vitaly in his own car.

Alex watched as the circus animals retreated for the night, whispering thanks and words of relief. He hesitantly opened the door and hopped into the room. The lights were dim, but bright enough for the lion to see his sleeping friend.

Alex cautiously walked over and sat down beside her bed. Her entire upper torso was wrapped in white bandages. Her paws were stretched out and her necklace was in her nightstand. He could hear the change in her breathing.

"I'm so sorry, Gia. This is all my fault," Alex whispered, stroking her cheek. "If I had payed attention, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

Gia peeked her eyes open and grabbed his paw with her own.

"We know the risks of circus," she explained, her voice incredibly raspy. Alex reached over and grabbed the glass of water on the stand, helping the beautiful jaguar drink.

"We take this lifestyle knowing that we are endangering our lives. Injury is like trophy. It would not be circus without accidents," she whispered, her throat cleared from the drink. She reached her paw up and stroked Alex's cheek, just as he was doing to her. She let out a mighty yawn and winced as the intake of breath jarred her ribs. She layed her head back down on the soft material and instantly fell asleep, exhausted by the events of the day.

Alex smiled, kissed Gia's forehead, and proceeded to lay down in his own soft bed. He smiled knowing that he could sleep without the thought of hurting the only female he's ever loved.

* * *

I hope you liked it! It was very fun to write. It is now almost half after midnight, so I am going to make this brief. Thank you again for the reviews! I appreciate them so much! Have a wonderful time!

-Elettra


	3. Fears

Hello! I apologize greatly for not writing a chapter for about a week. The recent storm knocked my power out for a couple days and I have been incredbly ill. I am still not feeling well, so this chapter is going to be very brief and most likely pointless. Again, I apologize for lack of chapters!

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The circus animals woke sluggishly one morning as the 103 degree heat slammed into their faces. They practically fell from the short drop from their train cars to the ground. Alex jumped down first from his car and politely helped Gia from smacking her face into the ground.

Gloria was fanning herself with her hands with Melman blowing on her to try to keep her cool.

"What are we going to do today?" Marty asked, panting. The heat was making it very difficult to breathe.

Gia, slumped at Alex's side with her fur slicked back with sweat, shook her head. "It has never been this hot before. I do not know what to do about it."

"Well, we've got to do something," Gloria responded. "Is there some water nearby?"

"Vater?" Vitaly asked, his Russian accent strong but confused.

"Yeah, so we can go swimming?" Melman added.

"I love-a swimming!" Stefano shouted.

"I do not think I have ever been swimming," Gia stated.

"Nor I," Vitaly admitted.

The rest of the circus animals looked at the felines as if they were insane. Alex pulled Gia off of the ground and bounced over to Vitaly.

"Then we're going swimming!"

* * *

About five minutes later, the circus animals stumbled upon a rather large pond. The water was unusually clear and beautiful. It was very strange to see such clean water. Without hesitation, the animals cheered and leaped into the water. Gia and Vitaly, however, remained on the bank of the pond. Alex resurfaced below them in the water.

"C'mon, guys! Hop in!"

"I am not sure I want to," Gia said, looking a little wary of the water as a drop landed on her foot.

"Awh, c'mon! The water's fine!" Marty exclaimed, swimming backwards over to the felines. Vitaly took a step back before running and launching himself into the water. Gia moved away from the splash zone with her ears flattened to agianst her head. Vitaly resurfaced with a triumphant smirk.

"This is vonderful!" he exclaimed. "Gia! You must join us!" Said jaguar backed up away from the water and sat down, wrapping her arms around her legs.

"I will pass. I think I will just watch."

"C'mon, Gia! You look absolutely miserable! This water is incredibly cool and refreshing!" Alex said. She shook her head and closed her eyes, flattening her ears again.

The lion, however, would not stand for this. He hopped out of the water and made his way towards his friend. She put up her paws in defense and squealed when he picked her up. Alex then proceeded to walk with the fidgeting jaguar in his grasp over to the water. Without hesitation, he flung the frightened cat into the water.

Gia's reaction was instantaneous. With a loud, desperate mew and a gasp of air, she leaped from the water and into the nearest tree. Her claws were dug into the bark of the branch and her fur was soaked, dripping to the ground below. All of the circus animals, who were splashing around and cooling off, stopped and stared in shocked silence at their feline companion.

"Gia?" Alex asked, his tone apologetic. Gia shook her head and leaped from the branch, stumbling back towards the train. He turned around to the other animals in confusion.

"I think you made the pussycat mad," Skipper said, breaking the silence. Vitaly began to growl at Alex. He held up his paws in defense.

"I didn't know she was going to react like that!"

"Maybe you should go apologize?" Gloria suggested. Melman and Marty nodded.

"I just don't understand what happened," the lion said.

"She once-a confided in-a me about a fear of-a water," Stefano stated. Alex rubbed his paw over his face in realization.

"I'll be right back," he said before running off. _How could I be so ignorant? _he thought.

The train sat on the tracks in the quiet clearing. The sun still shone brightly above.

Alex made his way over to his and Gia's train car. The door was shut, but he could hear faint sniffling inside. Worried, he opened the door without knocking.

Gia lay curled up in her bed, still soaking wet, with her face buried in the soft cushion. Alex flashed a sympathetic look and began to walk towards her. He put a comforting paw on her shoulder. Surprised, she jumped and looked up. Tears had made their way down her face but were masked by her already wet fur.

"I'm so sorry, Gia. I didn't know," he said softly while wrapping an arm around her shivering shoulders.

"You could not have known," she whispered. "I do not want to be afraid. I assume it is my natural instinct to fear water as a feline."

"Will you let me teach you to not be afraid?" Alex asked, looking into her amber eyes. She sniffed, wiped her tears on her arm, smiled, and nodded.

"I would like that."

* * *

Later on, during the night when all of the other circus animals had retired for the night after a fun-filled day, Alex hopped from the train car, helping Gia jump out as well.

"Are you ready?" he whispered. She nodded confidently.

"I am ready."

They walked to the site of the large pond and nearly gasped at what they saw. Under the light of the moon, the crystal-clear water shone a bright blue, illuminating the surrounding trees.

"It looks much less frightening at night," Gia giggled, earning a chuckle from Alex. He walked to her side and grasped her paw in his own.

"We're going to take this one step at a time." They began to slowly walk into the water up to their ankles. Gia shivered and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Alex looked at her for permission to continue, walking forward once more when she nodded her approval. They continued the same routine until the water was up to Gia's chest. Her eyes remained closed as she nearly sighed in content at the cooling feeling of the water.

"I'm going to let go. Is that okay?" Alex asked.

"Yes," she replied, finally opening her eyes. The lion swam to the middle of the pond and looked back at Gia still in the shallows.

"You're going to swim to me now."

Gia's eyes widened as she shook her head rapidly. "I cannot swim!"

"Yes, you can," Alex disagreed. "It comes natural. Give it a try." She took an unsteady breath before nodding. Slowly, Gia began to walk further into the water. It was now up to her neck. She pushed off the bottom of the pond and began to tread water instinctively. Her eyes lit up with success.

"Alex! I am doing it!" she shouted gleefully. She started swimming around in circles, enjoying the feeling of flying, and made her way over to Alex. He scooped her up in his arms and twirled her around in the water.

"Hold your breath," he ordered gently, still holding Gia in his arms. She took a deep breath before Alex dragged them both down underwater. She opened her eyes after a few seconds to find her lion companion staring right back at her. The light of the moon and illuminated pool made her fur and eyes shine beautifully. They smiled at each other underwater until they began to run out of breath. They took a deep breath when they resurfaced and began to laugh.

"Maybe we should add water to our circus act," Alex suggested teasingly. Gia giggled before she pushed him underwater and quickly swam away, still laughing as he coughed for breath.

* * *

The next morning when the two felines didn't come out of their train car, the other circus animals began to worry. That is, until they heard the giggles of their Italian feline friend coming from the direction of the pond.

Vitaly smirked, his striped arms over his chest. "He apologized."

* * *

Again, I am deeply sorry for the lack of updates and if you think this chapter is short and/or pointless. I will make sure to write a better one when I am feeling better! Thank you once again for the wonderful reviews! Have a wonderful day!

-Elettra.


	4. That Beautiful Smile

Hello, hello, my dear readers! I cannot express my apologies enough for not writing anything in months! I have been hospitalized for nearly a month and then recovering and doing school work for the remaining time. Again, I apologize greatly for not writing a new chapter! I hope you enjoy this one, though!

* * *

The summer days were beginning to grow cooler and cooler. During the day, it was a comfortable 75 degrees, and at night, the temperatures dropped to about 60 degrees, allowing the circus animals to snuggle up in their soft, new blankets. This particular morning, however, it was raining heavily.

The circus animals rubbed sleep from their eyes as they opened the sliding doors on their train cars. It was raining far too hard to do anything today without fearing for their safety.

"What are we going to do today?" Alex asked, half yawning, half growling.

"Ve have performance in five days. Ve must do something," Vitaly stated. Gia jumped from the train car and stood in the rain.

"He is right. We must practice in the rain." With a flick of her spotted tail, she ran towards the circus equipment that had already been set up days before.

Sighing, the rest of the circus animals followed their friend to their equipment.

* * *

A few minutes later, Alex and Gia stood on either side of the trapieze, the bar in their paws.

"Are you ready?" Gia called out, preparing to jump.

"Gia, I don't think-" he started.

"Go!" the jaguar shouted, cutting the lion off and jumping off of the platform. Alex did the same and began to fly towards the other feline.

All was going well so far. As the two felines let go of their bar, they did a series of mid-air flips. When they reached out to grab the next bar, however, their already soaked paws slipped from the bar, sending them plummeting to the net. They landed with a grunt and stared at each other.

"I told y'all this wouldn't be a good idea!" shouted Marty from the cannons, which wouldn't light due to the water. Gia huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Then what are we supposed to do?"

"I guess we go back to the train," Gloria offered. Melman nodded and they began to walk back to their section of the train. Everybody else began to follow suit, happy to get out of the violent rain and into the warmth of their train. Alex hopped up into their train car and reached a paw down to help Gia up. She annoyedly grabbed it and then went to sit on her bed. Alex looked back at her with a slight chuckle.

"Awh, c'mon. Don't be like that. It's just one day! We needed a break anyway!"

"We need all the practice we can get. Besides, what are we going to do all day?"

Alex thought for a moment. He had a bright idea that would allow them to do something and let him learn more about her. "What if we just get to know each other a bit more?"

Gia's eyebrows went up. Really? Get to know each other? She sighed. "I suppose. There is nothing else to do." Alex smiled and walked over to his own bed, sitting in it.

"Do you want me to go first?" At her nod, Alex began telling his beautiful, exotic friend about his life.

"Well, you know I'm from a zoo, but that wasn't where I was born," he began. Gia's eyes lit up for a second, but went back to normal the next.

"It's true! I was born on the plains of Africa. My dad was the king of our pride. He would always try and teach me to be a vicious lion, but I was more into dancing," he said with a slight chuckle. Gia smiled and imagined the little, dancing cub.

"Until one day," he continued, "I was luered out of my protected land by poachers." Gia gasped.

"They stuffed me in a box and started to drive away. I cried for my dad over and over until he finally heard me and started chasing the car. I kept screaming for him to catch up. He finally had my box in his paws, but the hunters shot him in the ear. My box fell off of the car and into a river. I was floating away from where my dad was running."

"Alex," Gia started, a sympathetic look written all over her face.

"It's okay. Years later, we flew to Africa from an island we were stuck on and I saw him again. I was banished from the pride when I lost a battle to this giant lion. After that, we swam to Monte Carlo and then crashed our plane in the train park. That's when we met you," he finished.

"Wow," Gia said when he finished talking. "You have been through a lot. I am sorry we treated you so harshly when we met."

"It's no big deal. We're all friends now, so everything is good! Your turn." He gestured to her. She sighed and began her story.

"I suppose you would have found out eventually, so I will tell you. I was born in Italy," she started.

"In the jungle? Are there jungles in Italy?" Alex asked suddenly.

"Well, no," she replied, her voice getting more quiet.

"Then...," the lion began, trying to figure out what the catch was.

"I was born in a zoo," the jaguar stated. She bowed her head in shame and closed her eyes. "My mother had always made me forget my dreams of doing something different. I wanted to share my talents with the world; to entertain people with them. She told me to stop filling my head with such stupid thoughts. When I left the zoo, she disapproved and told me that I was not her daughter. I met the circus soon after. They rescued me from hunger and dehydration. I owe my life to them."

By the time she had finished her story, Gia had tears filling up in her beautiful, ember-coloured eyes. Alex felt his heart break. He scooted over and gathered the now sobbing exotic beauty in his arms, stroking her fur.

"It's alright, Gia. You've got people who love you here. We're your family now and we all approve and love what you're doing," he whispered in a sincere tone. She looked up, tears still shining in her eyes and smiled.

"There's that beautiful smile!" Alex shouted, happy that the jaguar was no longer crying. She smiled brighter and nuzzled her nose against his cheek.

"I do not know where I would be without you, Alex," she whispered. And with that, the two felines fell asleep with the new knowledge of each other's existence, curled up in each other's arms. They wouldn't be cold tonight.

* * *

I think it was pretty good for something I made up on the spot. I apologize if you think it was a bit short. I was going to upload this earlier, but I slept for a great amount of time and spent the rest of my time outside, for it was so lovely today! Thank you all for the get well reviews and messages! I hope you enjoy the rest! Please feel free to stop by my inbox and say hello!

-Elettra.


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